Matthew Benkert’s Substantial Skies

Photographer Matthew Benkert probably is one of those people who Instagrams the LA sunset. On certain evenings in Los Angeles, when the clouds are perfectly blocking the sun and the marine layer mixed with a little bit of smog have collaborated, a beautiful spectrum of colors paint the sky, demanding all viewers of it take a photograph. These sky portraits commonly end up on Instagram and almost always come in packs. Benkert is probably included because he loves the Los Angeles sky and has focused on it, twisting it to the point of Lisa Frank hyperbole. His work is what we all dream these vibrant Los Angeles sunsets to be.

In his Subtance series, he takes his lens to the sky and shoots the sunset. Instead of representing them as they are he tints them with heliotrope and phlox, sea foam and pumpkin to create otherworldly skies that you’d imagine would appear nightly on Neptune. He juxtaposes them with tops of suburban homes, satellites, and trees, physical masses typically removed from sky lusting photos. It’s a funny and ironic statement that ties the world below the sky to the beauty above it.

Benkert’s Substance is so, so beautiful. He does what Adam Ferris does to the ocean, another equally as Los Angeles and photographed natural beauty. We are absolutely obsessed with this body of work and, if you like this, you’ll definitely like his black and white series too. Find out more about Benkert here.